The Tracker Chapter One
by SheLuvsMusic
Summary: Ariana Hough is a sixteen year old girl living in Chicago. One fateful night, after being harassed by a stranger and saved by her crush, her life will change forever. Start following Ariana's story in this first installment of The Tracker.


Chapter One – My Hero of Sorts.

The sound of the extremely inviting bass bid my body to dance in time with the beat. My instinct took over and the music seemed to seep its way into my veins. I swayed from side to side and let my long, black hair fall free from its hold at the back of my head. It felt good to know I had eyes on me. Little did I know what I was getting myself into.

"Care for a drink?" I looked up and saw a great looking guy in a black suit staring down at me. But I smelled alcohol on his breath and that was good enough for me to give him the thumbs down. "Come on. We could have some fun together." He said, taking a step closer.

"No, means no." I said backing away searching out the group of friends I had come to the club with. The guy started following me, so I kept backing up. I made my way through the crowd desperately trying to loose him. It didn't work. I turned around and squared him right in the face. "Leave me alone."

"Ooh. You're a feisty one. I like it." He took another step forward, trying to trap me. My hands searched the wall behind me and found the handle to a back door. I pushed it open and ran: right into a dead end. That's just great, I thought. I got out of being trapped only to end up trapped again.

The guy in the suit came closer and had me pressed against the wall of the club. He smiled creepily. I tried to push him away, but he was bigger than me. His hands were already crawling their way up the edge of my skirt. I can't remember how long the struggle to get away went on before my rescue came.

"Hey!" the voice made the man harassing me look up. It came from a guy I knew. His name was Adrian Stone. I met him about a year before at this very club and we've been friends ever since. He was extremely handsome with bright blue eyes and dark hair. He had a certain rock star quality about him as well. And as hard as it is to admit, I've had a bit of a crush on him for quite some time.

"Come to ruin my fun, eh? Well, that is an obvious mistake." said my harraser.

"Oh, so I'm the one making a mistake? You've got an innocent girl pinned up against the wall, and you're doing things to her against her will. I think it's you who is making a mistake." Adrian replied.

My attacker sneered. He turned from Adrian and forced my chin up so that I had to look him dead on. "He's just jealous that I got to you first. It's okay though. I've always been one to share."

"I'm not interested in joining you. You've got two options. You can either walk away from my friend now, or you can continue. But let this be known. If you continue to hurt her, I'm going to be hurting you."

The man on top of me hesitated for a minute before sighing and stepping away. He was obviously intimidated by Adrian. He gave Adrian a small shove as he walked past him on his way out.

Adrian studied me for a second. "You okay?" he asked

"Yeah. I'll be fine. Thanks." I smiled. He didn't say anything back so I asked him, "Why exactly are you here? How did you find me?"

He hesitated for a second. "Ariana, it's not exactly hard for me to find you. It's not exactly hard for me to find anybody."

"What do you mean by that?" I said tilting my head sideways like a curious puppy.

Adrian sighed and lightly took hold of my arm. "I need to show you something." He led me behind the dumpster nearby. With the back of one of his hands he wiped across his forehead. It took me a minute to realize that when he did it, it removed makeup. In the middle of his forehead shone a sapphire crescent moon tattoo. I stared at him in horror and started to back away.

"You're… you're a vampyre."

Adrian reached out to touch me, but I flinched away. "Ariana, I'm still the same person." He seemed desperate for me to stay.

"No. No, this can't be happening. Why didn't you tell me?"

He ignored my question and instead he said, "I know you're afraid right now. I completely understand that. But I don't want you to think that vampyres are bad. We're not. We really are not. And what I've come to do today, Ariana, is to show you that. I was able to find you because I tracked you. I'm a tracker. I've come to mark you. And I know you're going to hate me, and I'm so sorry that I have to do this. But you'll be thanking me. You'll see." He didn't hesitate before saying the dreaded words, "Ariana Hough! Night has chosen thee; thy death will be thy birth. Night calls to thee; hearken to Her sweet voice. Your destiny awaits you at the House of Night." He looked at me with a bit of sadness in his eyes before pointing a long finger at my forehead.

And that was the moment I became Marked.


End file.
